The Sun. — London, England, 1838-02-21 00:00:00

food, no improvement in the condition of the negro was ob servable. Then, with regard to time, it is obviously of the utmost importance that the apprentice should have at least two holidays and a half a week—the Sabbath for religious worship and instruction, the Saturday to attend the mar kets, and half of Friday to work in his own garden. The Act of Emancipation specified forty-five hours a week as the period the apprentice was to work for his ma=ter, but the master so contrived matters as in most instances to make the forty-five hours the law allotted him run into the ap prentice's half of Friday, and even in 85Mf: cases into the Saturday. The elenter invariably counted the time from the moment that the slave commenced his work ; and as it often occurs that his residence was on the border of the estate, he may have to walk five or six miles to get the place he has to work. This was a point which he was sure their Lord ships would agree with him in thinking required alteration. The next topic to which I shall advert relates to the admi nistration of justice ; and this large and imporiant subject I cannot pass over without a word to remind your Lordships how little safe it is, how little deserving the name of just or anything like just, that w here you have two classes you should separate them into conflicting parties, until they be. come so exasperated in their resentment as scarcely to re gard each other as brethren of the same species; and that you should place all tho administration of justice in the hands of one dominant class, whose principles, whose passions, whose interests are all likely to be preferred by the judges when they presume to sit where you have placed them on the judgment seat. The chief and puisne Judges aro raised to their si tuations from amongst the class which includes the white men and planters. But worse than that, the jurors are taken from the same privileged body : jurors, who are to assess civil damages in actions for injuries done to the negroes—_ jurors who are to try bills of indictment against the whites for the maltreatment of the blacks--jurors who are to convict or acquit on those bills—jurors who are to try the slaves themselves—nay, magistrates, jailors, turnkeys, the whole apparatus of justice, both administrative and exe cutive, exclusively in the hands of one race. What is the consequence ? Why, it is proverbial that no bills are found for the blacks.—( Hear, hear.) Six bills of indictment were preferred, some for murder and some for bad manslaughter, and at one assizes every one of these six indictments was thrown out. Assizes after Assizes the same thing happened, until at length wagers were held that no such Bill would be found, and no one was found to accept them. Well was it for them that they declined, for every one of the bills preferred was ignored. Now, observe that in proceedings, as your Lordships k now , b e f ore gran d j urors not a tittle of evidence is heard for the prisoners ; every witness is in favour of the in dictment, or finding of the bill; but in all these instances the bills were flung out on the examination of evidence solely against the prisoner. Even in the worst cases of murder, as certainly and plainly committed as the sun shines at noon day, monstrous to all, the bills were thrown out when half the wit nesses for the prosecution remained to be examined.—( Hear, hear.) Some individuals swore against the prisoners, and though others tendered their evidence, the jury refused to hear them.—( Hear, hear.) Besides, the punishments inflicted are monstrous ; 39 lashes are inflicted for the vague, indefi nite—because incapable to be defined—offence of insolence. Thirty-nine lashes for the grave and the more definite, I ad mit, offence of an attempt to carry a small knife. Three months' imprisonment or fifty lashes for the equally grave offence of cutting off the shoot of a cane-plant ! There seems to have prevailed at all times amongst the Gover nors of our colonies a feeling, of which I grieve to say the governors at home have ever and anon largely partaken, that there is something in the nature of a slave—something in the habits of the African negro—something in the disposition of the unfortunate hapless victims of our own crimes end cruel ties, which makes what is mercy and justice to other men cruelty to society and injustice to the law in the case of the negro, and which condemns offences slightly visited, if visited at all, with punishment, when committed by other men, to the sentence that fur his obdurate nature none can be too severe. --(Hear.) As if we had any one to blame but ourselves—as if we had any right to visit on him that character if it were ob durate, those habits if they were insubordinate, that dishonest disposition if it did corrupt his character, all of which I deny, and which experience proves to be contrary to the fact and truth ; but even if these statements were all truth, instead of being foully slanderous and absolutely false, we of all men have ourselves to blame, ourselves to tax, and ourselves to punish, at least for the self-abasement, for we have been the very causes of corrupting the negro character.—(Cheers.) If some capricious despot, in his career of ordinary tyranny, Were to tax his imagination to produce something more monstrous and unnatural than himself, and were to place a clove amongst vultures, or engraft a thorn on the olive tree, much as we should marvel at the caprice, we should be still more astounded at the expectation, which ex ceeds even a tyrant's proverbial unreasonableness, that he should gather grapes from the thorn, or that the clove should be habituated to a thirst for blood. Yet that is the caprice, that is the unreasonable, the foul, the gross, the monstrous, the outrageous, incredible injustice of which we are hourly guilty towards the whole unhappy race of negroes.—( Cheers, ) My Lords, we fill up the measure of injustice by severely exe cuting laws badly conceived in a still more atrocious and cruel spirit. The whole punishments smell of blood.—( Hear, hear.) If the treadmill stop in consequence of the languid limbs and exhausted frames of the victims, within a minute the lash resounds through the building—if the stones which they are set to break be not broken by limbs scarred, and ''marred, and whaled, they are summoned by the crack of the whip to their toilsome task. I myself have heard within the lest three hours, from a person who was an eye-witness of the appalling and disgusting fact, that a leper was introduced amongst the negroes ; and in passing let me remark that in private houses or hospitals no more care has been taken to separate those who are stricken with infectious diseases from the sound portion, any more than to furnish food to those in prison who are compelled, from the unheard-of, the paltry, the miserable disposition to treat with cruelty the victims of a prison, to go out and gather their own food—a thing which I believe even the tyrant of Siberia does not commit. Yet in that prison, where blood flews profusely, and the limbs of those human beings are sub jected to perpetual torture, the frightful, the nauseous, the disgusting —except that all other feelings are lost in pity to wards the victim and indignation against the oppresses—sight was presented of a leper, scarred from the eruptions of dis ease on his legs and previous maltreatment, whaled again and again, and his blood again made to flow from the gaoler's lash. I have told your Lordships how Bills have been thrown out for 'murdering the negroes. But a man had a Bill presented for this offence : a petition was preferred, and by a white limn. Yes, a white man, who had dared, under feelings of excited indignation, to complain to the regularly constituted authorities, instead of receiving for his gallant conduct the thanks of the community, had a Bill found which was pre sented against him as a nuisance. I have, within the last two hours, amid the new mass of papers laid before your Lordships within die last forty-eight hours, culled a sample which, I believe, represents the whole odious mass. Eleven females have been flogged, starved, lashed, attached to the tread mill, and compelled to work until nature could no longer endure their sufferings. At the moment when the wretched victims were about to fall off—when they could no longer bring down the mechanism and continue the movement, they were suspended by their arms, and at each revolution of the wheel received new wounds on their members, until, in the language of that law so grossly outraged in their persons, they " languished and died." Ask you if a crime of this murderous nature went unvisited, and if no inquiry was made respecting its circum stances? The forms of justice were observed ; the hand maid was present, but the sacred mistress was far away. A coroner's inquest was called ; for the laws decreed that no such injuries should take place without having en inquiry instituted. Eleven inquisitions were held, eleven inquiries were made, eleven verdicts were returned. For mur der ? Manelalighter ? Misconduct ? No ; but that " they , died by the visitation of God." A lie—a perjury—a blas phemy ! The visitation of God 1 Yes, for it is among the most awful of these visitations by which the inscrutable pur poses of his isill are mysteriously accomplished, that he Sometimes arms the wicked with power to op press the guiltless—and if there be any visitation more dreadful than another—and which more tries the faith and vexes the reason of erring mortals, it is when Heaven showers down upon the earth the plague--not of scor pions —or pestilence—or famine—or war—but of unjust judges and perjured .persons—wretches who pervert the law to wreak their personal vengeance or compass their sordid views, and forswear themselves on the Gospels of God, to the end that injustice may prevail, and the innocent be de stroyed I—( Cheers.) Now, my Lords, it is for the purpose of stopping such enormities as these, of correcting the adminis tration of justice, of securing the comforts and restraining the torments to which the negroes are now subject, of amending the discipline of the prisons, and of giving the necessary Powers for enforcing the local acts--it is wills these views that I Propound to your Lordships the first five resolutions, to have e ffect during, I trust, the very brief period which will elapse between this hour and the time when freedom is finally este bliithed. My Lords, I entirely concur in what was formerly said by M r . Burke, and afterwards repeated by Mr. Canning , that w hil e t h e making of laws was confined to the owners of slaves , tlothing th e y did was ever found real or effectual. And when, Perchance, anything was accomplished, it had not, as Mr. Burke "id "an executive principle." But, when they find you deter mined to do your duty, it is proved, by time example which they have given in passing the Apprenticeship Amendment Act, that they will even outstrip you to prevent your inter ference with them.—( Hear, hear.) Therefore, if your reso lutions demonstrate that you are in good earnest, depend upon h themselves will be in earnest tomcat them. I look forward host undoubtedly to great improvements being effected by the bten which I propose here, and which will be followed up elsewhere; but from all the attention which I have been able to bestow on the subject, I niuet look on it as the origin of that complete and final emancipation which I hare demon strated to be safe, expedient, useful, and imperative.— (Cheers.) The proposal which I make is one of expediency and temporary application, to be observed until the time arrives when freedom can be secured. But let that once be e stablished—place the negroes on the same footing with other i nen—and give them the uncontrolled power over their time and labour—and it will become the interest of the planter, as well as the rest of the community, to treat the negro well, for their comfort and happiness depend on his industry and good behaviour. —(Cries of " Hear, heel.") It is a con sequence perfectly clear, notwithstanding former distinc tions, notwithstanding the difference of colour and the variety of race in that population, the Negro and the West Indian w ill in a very few generations—when the clank of his chain is no longer "heard, when the oppression of the master can vex no more, when equal rights are enjoyed byili a end all have a common interest in the general pros perity-_be impressed with a sense of their having an equal share in the promotion of the public welfare Such are the visions of improvement ; not only of peace and happiness fol- TUI E SUN, LONDON, WEDNES DA 1 7 , FEi.ItUAB V 21, 1838. not be. employed in a more useful field ; and it was with the view or- contributing to the cessation of Patch atrocities as these related that he had come forward to sanction the resolu tions which had been proposed. —( Hear, hear.) Lord GLENELG said that there could be no doubt of the importance of the subject to which the Noble and Learned Lord had called the attention of the House, but there might be some difference as to the means which should be taken to accomplish the objects which he had in view. The Noble Lord had described one of the most debasing traffic that could afflict hilminity—a traffic, the existence of which had been viewed by this country with the greatest horror. We had sacrificed our rational interests in the great cause of humanity, but the moral feeling of the country had been ad vanced and elevated. Since that period the efforts of this country had been constantly devoted to the great purpose of surd ressing the slave trade throughout the world. At the close of the war, one of the great objects of this nation was to bind all Europe in one compact, finally to put down the slave trade. Tl:at was the object at the Congress at Vienna. At that period the slave trade was universal. The powers who united in pronouncing its condemnation were Eng_ land, Russia, Austria, Prussia, Portugal, and Spain, Stec_ den, and France.--( Hear. hear.) Spain had been proverbial for centuries for transactions of this nature, and she at first entered into an engagement with England to abolish the slave trade, except in her colonial possessions, and subsequently gave net only the right of search, not only the mixed corn. mission (which meant a commission of combined judicature), but ale() two most important articles, the equipment article and the breaking up article. She had also given this country the complete power of executing the treaties into which she had entered. The consequence was, that no Spanish flag was now said to cover the slave trade. Another great power was France, who had acceded to all the treaties made with Spain, with the single exception of the mixed commission, because France had declared, that it was a principle of French law that no French subject should be tried except by a tribunal purely French. Portugal also pledged herself to abolish the slave trade, reserving the trade with her Transatlantic poi seesions, and this country had assigned her a debt of 600,0001., Vesicles the payment of 300,0001. which had been given as a compensation for losses ; but as the treaty was to be executed by Portuguese authorities, it was a dead letter. Den mark, Tuscany, Naples, and Sardinia had acceded to the treaty with France ; and, it was believed, that in a short time Belgium would also. As to Russia, Austria, and Prussia, they had been invited, and had declared their per fect readiness to accede to a treaty precisely of the same nature. But, after all, the great resource was—first, the power of execution, and still more the moral sense and feeling of the nation that entered into the treaty. At one time the sympathy in France was entirely in favour of the slave trader ; but at this moment there was no slave trading under the French flag. Such a retrospect ought to animate our efforts ; and he did not hesitate to assert that one of the great reasons assigned for this improvement had been the moral effect of the example of England. flow did we stand with regard to the New World? With the United States we had no treaty. That country had felt itself bound not to concede the principle of the right of search ; but there had been treaties with Mexico, Chili, and Colombia. Brazil, he was sorry to say, had long resisted our efforts. The Noble Lord then referred to an Address which had been presented to the Crown in the year 1821, in which complaint was made of most of those Powers whom lie had now mentioned as being parties to the treaties. With respect to the present Address what expecta tion could there be of succeeding in it? lie ventured to think that an appeal of this nature to France and the United States would not be successful. France had already told us that she would not agree to the mixed commission ; and the United States was still less likely to agree, having refused the right of search. He did not see that the motion could lead to any practical re sult, because Pootugal had already passed the necessary law, and Spain was prepared to do so at any time. He thought, however, that it was of importance that the House of Lords should on the present occasion show that the faith of the treaties and the rights of humanity were not forgotten. For this purpose he should move an address in place of that moved by the Noble and Learned Lord—an address which he sin cerely hoped, would be adopted by the House. The Noble Lord then read the proposed address, which was to the effect " That that House continued to feel the deepest anxiety for the total abolition of the nefarious traffic in slaves throughout the world—that their Lordships regretted to find that, notwith standing the treaty entered into by Portugal, the Portuguese flag still extensively maintained the traffic, and expressive of their opinion that Portugal was bound in good faith to consent, without further delay, to such additional stipulations as were necessary for the complete fulfilment of the treaty." He now came to the resolutions of the Noble'and Learned Lord. In the first place the Noble Lord had recommended the abolition of head money to the captors of slave ships, and the substitution of an equivalent calculated upon the tonnage of the vessel. At pre sent the effect of the law was, that where slaves were on board a captured ship, the captors received more than where there were none. In the first case they received so much per head ; in the last there was an allowance according to tho tonnage of the vessel. The Noble and Learned Lord had proposed the abolition of head-money altogether, and the substitution of a tonnage. With respect to the tonnage, that subject was already under the consideration of Government, and it was proposed to increase the amount of tonnage. But lie could not agree in the Noble Lord's proposition to abolish head-money. He thought the Legislature were bound not to take away any of the inducements that would operate on the minds of the individuals engaged in the capture, but that the slaves should have the advantage of even the meanest motives to their emancipation from suffering. Not that he meant to infer that such motives were required in order to induce those men to persevere earnestly in that duty. The Noble and Learned Lord next recommended the establishment of steamers on the African coast, with letters of marque, for the purpose of stopping the trade at its source, these steamers to act under the control of the Royal cruisers. The suggestion as to the use of steam-vessels well deserved the attention of the Admiralty. The obstacle, however, was not the want of steam-vessels, but the want of all right and jurisdiction to act on the coast, because Portugal had not executed the necessary treaty. ( Bear.) He objected strongly to the proposition to give let ters of marque. Many men would, no doubt, be found ready to embark in the enterprise, but would they not after a time become themselves open to the suspicion of carrying on a traffic in slaves for their own profit? Lord BRO ITC HAM--They would act under the controul of the Government cruisers. Lord GL ENE LG questioned whether that controul could ever be sufficiently active and vigilant to preclude the possibility of evasion under the peculiar circumstances of the coast in ques tion. But there was another and a stronger objection to grant ing the letters of marque. This was that it would be contrary to the treaties, which expressly provided that only ships of the Royal Navies of the respective countries should be engaged in the suppression of the trade. If England grant©d letters of marque other countries would follow the example ; and surely we should not be gainers by the adoption of such a system. Besides, interminable disputes would arise between the dif ferent nations on the score of the proceedings of their respec tive vessels, which might, under peculiar circumstances, lead to dangerous,and important consequences.—( hear.) He now came to anodes portion of the Noble and Learned Lord's speech—that which related to the negro apprenticeship sys tem. The present was not the occasion for entering at any great length into the question; but it was, nevertheless, ne cessary for him to say a few words as to the views and inten tions of her Majesty's Government on the subject. He quite agreed with his Noble Friend that it could not be truly said that the condition of the apprentice was worse than that hf the slave had been. lie thought, on the contrary ; that the apprentice had been on the whole a gainer. This view was confirmed as well by the reports on their Lordships' table, as by tho personal experience of all who had visited the West India colonies. But did he deny that there were still great grievances ? D.d he state that the Noble and Learned Lord had exaggerated in his statements ? No. Deeply did he grieve to have to admit (and he really would nut make the confession were it not forced upon him) that grievances and evils still prevailed in the West India islands, but more - especially in Jamaica, to a very seri ous extent, He was bound to say that the whole negro race had exhibited great docility since the passing of the Emancipation Act ; that they had borne the chalgo with great moderation and astonishing calmness. The object of the Legislature in establishing the intermediate state of ap prenticeship was, to combine the freedom of the negro with the preservation of the interests of the planter. Having granted the planters the right to continue the labour of the negroes during a certain number of years, the Legislature was bound to secure the negroesi protection, that their con dition should be as happy and secure as though they had oh toined complete freedom. While lie was prepared to admit that these objects d not been fully secured in working out the Emancipation Act, he yet could not refrain from saying that the agitation of the question in the Colonies had been mo 1 injudicious and injurious. It had produced and kept alive a mutual distrust, and tended to excite and maintain a spirit of animosity between the planters and the negroes. This went to destroy the harmony upon which the whole plan was founded. In the minds of the planters a suspicion of the intentions and impartiality of the British Legislature was produced, while a feeling of resistance and hatred was en gendered among the peasantry, who had gradually been con forming their feelings to their new situation. He appealed to all those who had practical experience on tbo subject whe ther to abolish apprenticeship at once would not have been a much worse evil than even the evils he was now deploring. He felt, however, as he hed already observed, that this country was bound to see full justice done to the negroes ; that having entered into a solemn compact to preserve their rights during six years, we were bound to provide for their safety and happi ness during their intermediate state, Ile lamented to have to say that very great obstacles had been thrown in the way of the due performance of that compact, although the conditi of the apprentice was un loubtedly an improvement upon that of the slave. The v isiti n g Magistrates have me t w ith every possible obstacle to th e d ue di s chaege of th e i r d u ti es . These obstacles, though not atneunting perhaps to illegality, were nevertheless such as effect ua lly prevented th e d ue p er f o rrnaece of the trust reposed in them by the Legislature. It was true that Magistrates had b een by every pos s ibl e means exc luded from the d:stricts where the apprentices were most ()p -i reused. The course of justice had in every possible way been impeded. Much oppression had undoubtedly taken place in the workhouses. The Magistrates were excluded, and the unfortunate victims were said to be undergoing the workhouse discipline, when in fact they were expiating in horrid tortures the crime of having been emancipated. But on the other hand there had been great exaggeration=. Under these circumstances an individual ( Captain Tisdel, as we un derstood) had been sent out by Government to Jamaica to in qui: e into and report the real facts. His report would be re ceived in April, and until then the Government could do no thing. - He felt, however, that to see to the due performance of die contract entered into by the Legislature, was the 1 bounden duty of Government. Another circumstance that • materially affected the comfort of the negroes was, the distri bution of the hours of leteeer. An alteration had been male from the eine hours system of labour to eight hours, the effect of which was to deprive the labourer of his half Friday. Ano ther mode in which the intentions of the framers of the Act lied been defeated, was in the classification adopted by the Co lonial Legislature of the prmdial and non-prsedial apprentices ; those who were to be free in 1f338, and those who were to be freed in 1840 In all the Colonies, except Jamaica, laws had been passed classifying the labourers in a manner accordant with the spirit of the Act. Ia Jamaica a law of the kind was passed which he (Lord Glen°lg) had been obliged to dis allow. No new law had been introduced since ; but he felt that the Government were bound to see that the keel assembly redressed the existent abuses. All redress ought preferably to come from the assembly, in order to secure the good feel ing of the people. Every passible obstruction had been thrown in the way of the special magistretes. S )rne had been fined, and the Governor had indemnified them ; but what could indemnify them for the suffering of mind and the disgrace at tending such a state of things? Ile repeated now what he had said two years ago—that the British Legislature were bound to make good their solemn compact, and if their appli cation to the Colonial Legislature were not successful, h e should then feel bound formally to apply to Parliament to en force the Act of Emancipation. When, in the month of No vember,he informed there that, although he was nut prepared to pro. the parties interested were with him ( Lord Glenelg) e condition of the population, or appeal to Parliament to enforce pose t t w h c abolition of a n the p do )r l e o n n t i ies a c lL h e i pgi yet,s latt that e tothe Govern_ gout ameliorate ove t r l n s the Emancipation Act. That time had now arrived. No thing was to be hoped from the colonial authorities, and the British Parliament must be applied to. With regard to the workhouse system, the law of Jamaica on that subject ought not to be mixed up with a question that only related to ap prentices; because any law for the improvement of the we:I:- house system must be a permanent measure. The measure he proposed to submit to Parliament would have for its ob ject to redress the grievances of the apprentices, and in the mean time instructions had been sent out, tending to mi tigate those grievances—that the Special Magistrates should have the right to enter, not only the workhouses, but all other places where apprentices might be concealed from public in spection—that all such places should be laid open to the Spe cial Ma g istrates. This arrangement would materially tend to check, if not to put an end to those evils of which the an prentieee so justly complained. The measure also ptoposed to enact that the Governor, by proclamation, should arrange the hours at which the punishment of a sieve must take place. With respect to those indulgences and allowances which the apprentices were entitled to in a state of slavery, an impor tant amendment was proposed to be adopted in the present system, that it should be in the power of the Governor, when he saw fit, to enforce the concession of those allowances and indulgences. With respect to manumission, he thought it might be proper to enable the Governor to introduce into Jamaica something of the same system which had been in troduced into the Crown Colonies. It was also proposed that in the ease of legal measures of a vexatious character being taken against the Special Magistrates, that the Governor should have the power of arresting the progress of such measures ; and in cases where the special magistrates were subjected to pay penalties the governor should, if he saw fit, report such cases to the Government at home, in order that it might de termine, on due consideration here, whether such penalties and the expenses consequent thereon should be repaid. This would relieve the Special Ma g istrates from the terror under which they at p resen t exe rcised their duties. The same mea sure would provide that, ie the case of non-prsedial appren tices, measures should be taken that they should have full op portunity to know their real state, in order to enable them to claim their rights, and also that an important revision should take place of the classification list. If the classification in Jamaica proposed to the Governor should be considered to he satisfactory, then that he should sanction the passing of the Act ; but if it was not satisfactory then that he should adopt the classification system of some of the Crown Colonies. The security thus given to the Special Magis trates, and the right of admission on their part into work houses, and all other houses where apprentices were placed, would, he apprehended, naturally check the existing griev awsr,coeng in anys;but,f p u le r a th e e , r, it was proposed that, if The Governor was satisfied th at if any i n di v id ua l apprent i ce was su ff er i ng he should have the power, by the exercise of his own discretion, to make that person free altogether.— (Cheers.) This, he trusted, would have a material effect. It would put an end at once to the disgusting and degrading practice which existed of men flogging females in these places. Nothing was more revolting to the minds of the people of this country than the system of flogging, which was degrading in the highest degree. The Abolition Act was set at nought and laughed to scorn by the men who had been masters of slaves, and who were the men at whose discretion this punishment was administered? Br men who had been convicts for life, who had lost every feeling of honour, and who, in spite of the law against flogging females, continued the practice; but he would go fur ther, and say that flogging an apprentice at all was a stain upon their legislation. To retain the use of the whip was the badge and curse of slavery. Ho could state that in many of the West India islands it had been all but abolished. In the Bahamas for many months there had been no flogging, until within the last few months there had been two or three instances; but in all the islands there had been a great diminution of the prac• tice, and in Guiana, where the law did not apply, the practice was almost unknown. Then let their Lordships declare that at a certain period, the practice of flogging apprentices should cease. A proposition to this effect it was his intention to in troduce into the Bill which it was his intention to submit for their Lordships' adoption. Such were the general provisions of the measure which he was about to introduce, and he trusted their Lordships would be of opinion that, inasmuch as the House of Assembly of Jamaica had neglected to perform its duty, the period had arrived at which to assert the autho rity of Parliament. He trusted his Noble and Learned Friend would not insist on pressing his resolution to a division. The Duke of WELLINGTON had listened with the greatest attention to the statement just made to them by the and he agreed with him that from the rcßillte for the abolition of the slave trade had greatest cfiorts had been made by all the e rn si ents of this country, and most particularly bhlaBdl4himinselofrdbeere tobeen carry employedtha a t s abo litionthesbue Noblece cn period e s Baron va t a ec r w t o Ge h n i i lo c , :h p et different Congresses with foreign a e st n tinti l lec s ' l ee ace since 1815, at all of which he his Noble Friend the late Lord Castle yo,aieivesretosi e r n . y rwo t e rcr o x ah l' e t e ch C r d t landtm Englandoeti ntanh. taken p reagh, in order to carry into execution all the measures adopted by the British Parliament. He also agreed with the Noble Baron in respect to all those details into which L e had en tered at so much length. But, unfortunately, it happened that we had had the strongest prejudices to contend with, both as regarded our own objects, and as regar d e d t h e G o . vernments ef our allies ; and until 1319, 1820, 1821, and even a later period, no great progress was made in negotiating treaties with them to carry the ab o liti on o f t h e slave trade into effect. He likewise agreed with the Noble and Learned Lord in the statement which he had made in respect to the horrors by means of which thir trade was carried on, and by which it was attended in all its stages. He knew not whether those horrors in hisli n theist piirticttlar o view , were V io e r re n such and as tli chains e o ; lbeoatnd this Learned iedid Lord had state d them to be in r espect to casting individuals kirntoowt,htehaseta havinghe had been authorized to state, and that he did state to one of the Congresses which he had attended, that those unfortunate persons were confined in casks with their and that those casks were seetnhafltoantoinglepssastthtalnteftr'oesm pursuit of the elave rt s e l t i i i p f s r . o in tae th irons upon them ; that a number of casks hind Loon cast into e h a s d h o p r r e o s v e o d f neighbouring island s the sea; hear.) That p o i nt , h e repeated, was proved beyond all dis p ute before on e of the congresses, which t 6eA o Nofer, t or : eyo i e aoy s teto a lot t r i . s tBL f , a oo c ,(so t ehi0o10::00. of e f rs t that America C o werenga edxsis) theo, Wes sels which were in he had lied the honour of attending on behalf of this country. Under such eircurnstancee lie should he happy to concur in any measu re which should tend to put an end entirely t o thi s prac tice.a.-( Ilcar, hew.) He was very much afraid, however, that the measure new proposed by the N o bl e an d Learned Lord w a s not exactly calculated to produce the effect which the Noble tired Learned Lord anticipated from it. The proposi tion of the Noble and Learned Lord was, that their Lordships should present an address to her Majesty in order t o before in Unite elio) h rw e F r 'irta N rn l e a c j afc e l e ya t y ns , dy , a a cs n f d nSe lc)ea procure tst neces sary, r s e t t i h ' r t i ' a s e d trade o t ft u l e h s c e e l r i d r e a ( S i c y ta . t pro posed to her by a solemn address to interfere with the Govern ments of foreign powers for any given object, that object should be accurately defined, and that there should be no doubt as to the meaning which their Lordships had in view, and which it was their intention to convey to foreign powers Ile begged, therefore, to know what wits the meaning of the word " piracy," de s n o t this i h s p i country, ra cou ntry.ey, o of which Iv and h l i i .c e il which h begged t p l ut!noi irs it hL n n o c;r t e t d : sth h wi a pa t s and especially what was the meaning of it as attached to the slave ich ime e t csv r rb t s , w attached theas be meaningt o inflictedt e to -on the subjects of this country in foreign countries, in France, in Spain, in Portugal, in the United States. Ile begged also to know what was the punishment which it was supposed that those countries would allow to be inflicted on their subjects here, if they should happen to be convicted in any of our Courts of that crime? These were questions which he thouOt their Lordships should be able clearly to answer and define before they voted an Address to her Msjesty, calling upon her to propose to other Powers to concur with her in declaring this crime to be piracy. Ile would now advert to the first resolution moved by the Noble and Learned Lord, in re spect to the rewards to be given to the captors for the capture of slav es , or rather of vessels engaged in the slave trade. This was a question on which 17e thought . that their Lordships should carefully avoid originating any opi nion. It was a question which belonged especially to the Executive Government, and ought to be settled by her Ma jesty with the advice of the Lords of the Admiralty. It was a question, too, which had reference to the disposal of money, on which it was, in his opinion, desirable that the House of Lords should not originate any reselution. In respect to the second resolution of the Noble and Learned Lord on this ques tion, namely, that of issuing letters of marque to enable pri vate individuals to employ steam-vessels to capture slave ships he thought t h at t h e argument o f t h e N o bl e B aron oppe site. was Perfectly unanswerable. According to our treaties with all foreign Powers, especially France, it would he impossible for us to authorize such vessels to be employed in such a ser vice. Under these circumstances, he thought their Lord ships would not and ought not to recommend her Majesty to adopt this resolution of the Noble and Learned Lord. In respect to the five last resolutions of the Noble and Learned Lord, he confessed that it wile with the greatest pain thet he had heard the speeches both of the Noble and Learned Lord and of the Noble Baron opposite. He had been in hopes that, after the Noble Baron had found himself under the ne cessity of proposing to their Lordships the enactment of a law to carry into execution the Slavery Abolition Act, the Colo nial Assemblies generally, and most particularly the Colonial Assembly of Jamaica, would have proceeded frankly to csrry into execution all the measures which wore necessaiv to deal fairly with the apprentices, and with this 'country which had advanced so large a sum of money to give compensation for the injury done to them and their property. He confessed that he was happy to hear the Noble Baron state his intention of proposing to Par Helmut a measure which would enable • the Government to sre that those arrangements were strictly carried into execution, because as such was his intention, their Lordships would not he wider the necessity of pass - ng these resolutions to effect the same object. lle confessed that he should be very unwilling to vote for the resolutions of the Noble and Learned Lord, instead of having it in prospect, as he now had, to vote for the Bill, which he understood was to be proposed by Government, having the same object. Ile agreed with what the Noble Boron had stated respecting the Slavery Abolition Act; he could not, however, agree that, be cause the Colonial AesemUlies had not done all they ought to have done to carry the provisions of the Parliament into execu tion, and because in some respects those provisions had not pro duced all the benefit we expected—he could not agree, how ever, that after the Ist of August, 1838, ell these apprentices ought to be declared free. He did not think that that was a fair mode of proceeding. Under these circumstances he should really feel himself compelled to vote against the resolutions of the Noble and Learned Lord if ho continued to propose them to the notice of the House. The Marquis of SLIGO was almost inaudible in the gal lery, but we understood hint to express his thanks to his Noble Friend the Secretary for the Colonies for the very satisfactory answer which he had given to the statements of die Noble and Learned Lord below him. He thought that the time was now fully come when the Imperial Parliament was bound to take measures to enforce its own enactments. He hoped that the Noble and Learned Lord would give up his idea of divid ing the House on these resolutions, in order that the Colonies might clearly understand that their Lordships were unanimous on this subject. Lord BROUGHAM said that as he perceived that the debate had now come to a close, he should avail himself ©f the few minutes which it was the usual course in this as well as in the other House of Parliament to extend to the proposer of any measure, whatever might be the ultimate decision of their Lordships upon the propositions before them, for the purpose of making one or two observations upon the statements by whirls his opinions had been attempted to be impugned, and by which his propositions had been opposed. He would pass over a very great portion of the statement of his Noble Friend ( Lord Glenelg) upon the subject of the abo lition of the Slave Trade, because the whole history of which he had treated of the means which had been employed by this country to prevail on foreign powers to abandon that exe crable traffic had this prominent and striking feature in it, that though they showed what indeed no one ever denied— for the man must be deprived of his memory to have for gotten it, and of Isis reason to have expected otherwise— that though France had joined with us, and Spain had given her tardy and reluctant accession, and Holland had assented to become a party to abolish that detested traffic, yet, as long as there remained Portugal opposed to us, it signified not if France had joined ten times over, Spain as often, and Hol land ten times over too ; for that the great wrong-doer, the great criminal, the atrocious sinner of all—Portugal—had refused to join; nay, even it a much feebler, if there were a feebler government than that of Portugal—according to the logic and the principles of the foreign policy of his Noble Friend at the head of the Colonial Department, and also, as it seemed, of another Noble Friend of his in another place who was at the head of the Foreign Department, and who had given his adherence to that policy—according to their joint principle, even the accession of all the world besides—if a less Power titan Portugal—if Tuscany, Genoa, or that great commercial country Austria—( Laughter)—and all those other slave-trading countries of Europe were to refuse— even that accession would be absolutely nugatory, null, and of no effect. What signified it to him, when these criminals were steering abroad as notorious as the sun, polluting land and sea with their crimes, laying waste Africa with their robberies and murders—what signified it to him to be told that England had at length wearied out by constant appeals—those other nations who were induced to join the treaty of 1821, and that of the four States who were formerly criminal, three had ceased to be criminal now ? Why, if that fourth State continued to be criminal, and if from 60,000 to 80,000 miserable negroes (as their Lordships had been informed) were carried yearly over to America—in other words, if 60,000 or 80,000 victims of this horrible felony were yearly torn from Africa and sold as slaves, what did it avail in argument to say that France and Spain and Holland had abandoned that traffic ? " But," said his Noble Friend (Lord Gleneig), " Portugal is so weak, that there is no getting her to give up the slave trade." If she had been as strong as France, what, then, would have been the argument? " Oh," it would have been said, " Portugal is so strong, that there is no venturing to provoke her by daring to call upon her to give up the slave trade." So that, be she weak or be she strong, there was no help ; she must be allowed with impunity to pollute the land with her crimes, and the sea with her piracies. But with the same logic his Noble Friend had argued, that if he re quired Portugal to give up the slave trade, and if she should give it ug, there would be other States still opposed to its abolition; and his Noble Friend cited Austria—dis interested Austria, with all her colonies, and with all her slave plantations, with all her vessels engaged on the African coast, as well as in other places—(Laughter)—but which no black slave ever heard of before ! Then there was Prussia, then the Hans Towns—(Laughter)—then Sicily—( Renewed laughter)—and then Tuscany. Yes, his Noble Friend act's ally quoted Tuscany as a part of that confederacy which ex isted for the upholding of the Slave Trade. Why, he might have gone to the Grecian Seas, and have enumerated the Greek pirates—he might have referred to Algiers and to Tunis; and if the Bey of Tunis, or any other State which had a flag at all, were only reluctant to give up the Slave trade, that one flag might set France, Spain, Austria, Eng land, Holland, Portugal, Genoa, ay, and even Tuscany— (Laughter)—at defiance. Though France, and Spain, and Portugal had yielded to your eetreaties, yet if one State, how ever powerless, refused, the Slave Trade should ride trium phant over the world; because, according to his Noble Friend's argument, one flag was as good as one score. Was that the way, he would ask their Lordships, in which they treat ed Algiers? No ! They summoned Algiers to give up piracy, though their outrages were not half so numerous, their crimes not one-hundredth part so black or so offensive to all the feelings of human nature; yet they summoned her. Algiers had pilfered and pillaged the ships of other nations—crimes which with us were not one-twentieth part so criminal as those committed by Portugal, and yet we sent a squadron and bombarded Algiers; and the consequence was, that piracy ceased. He had been told by his Noble Friend that there was no chance of the French Government agreeing to this pro ceeding with respect to making the slave trade piracy, because said his Noble Friend, the French Government refused to al low its subjects if taken in the act of committing piracy to be tried before any tribunal except its own. But because a de clsratory law had been obtained from the other powers on this subject, did it follow that there might not most easily be in serted a clause providing that the French, or even the whole of the foreigners, should lee tried, when captured, before the Courts of their own country? Ile admitted that this would not be so satisfactory a manner of doing it as that of having the persons captured tried at the Sessions of the Criminal Court. at the Old Bailey. But, adverting again to the argu ment of his Noble Friend, he would ask were they to listen to this logic for the first time, that a country need only to be weak in order to be released from the obligation of its own treaties ? We paid Portugal 600,000/. ' by way of loan ; and as we converted the 15,000,000/. to the Wrest India planters into a gift, so we afterwards converted the 600,000/. into a gift. But not satisfied with that, as we swelled the 15,000,0001. up to 20,000,0001. by way of gift to the planters, so we made up the 600,0001. to 900,0001: to Portugal also as a gift. But the parallel did not end here. We gave the 20,000,0001. to the planters for nothing ; for it turned out that instead of sustaining a loss by the Emancipa tion Act they gained by it. In like manner we gave Portu gal 900,0001. to compensate them for the loss of the slave trade ; but, instead of losing it, their trade had greatly in creased ; and all that he now asked was, not that they shoeld refund the 900,0001.—that he conceived, would sarpass the efforts of all the financial statesmen ia the distinguished aearchv that now reigned upon the banks of the Tagus— ( Laueliter)—perhaps in courtesy he ought to have said Mo narchy, but he entertained too great a respect for a monar chical government to use that expression in reference to Por tugal at the present moment—no, he did net ask them to re fund the money ; all he asked was that they should be urged to perform the contract which has cost us nearly a million sterling. Let them be told in very significant language that they were bound to perform the conditions upon which that money was given to them ; and if they were not di-posed to perform them they must, he they weak or be they strong, abide by the con sequences of their conduct.—( Hear, hear.) Let that lan guage once be used. Let the Bsitish Minister but speak in telligible language, and I will answer for it (said the Noble • and Learned Lord) you will r; - t have again to complain of the weak power of Portugal setting, while objecting to fulfil their own treaty, the might of your pewee at defiance. He was told that Spain also did not faithfully adhere to the terms of the treaty. The Spaniards had cthi r things to be answer able for besides not carrying treaties into effect. Was it, or was it not the fact that the Governor of Monte Video re ceived a large sum of money as a bribe for allowing 2,000 of what he called colonists, that Was, African negroes and in chains, and whom, therefore, he (Lord Brougham) called slaves, to enter the port of Motile Video ? That had been publicly mentioned, it hod been printed in all the journals of northern Europe, and had never once beets denied. He firmly believed the statement, an.l he tool; it for granted that a representation had been made to the Government of Spain, whether weak or strong. A Nouen Lone on the opposition benches. without quitting his scat, observed that M irate Video no longer belonged to Spain. Lord BROUGHAM—ExactIy so. But lie desired and wished to know whether any representation had been made against that faithless breach of a treaty ; because it was, on the very face of it, one of the most disgusting artifices that he had ever yet heard used to defeat a solemn obligation Then, as to the manner in which our own money hail been bestowed: when he saw a suns of money so applied he owned he ;vas as tonished that a single voice should have been raised, as his Noble Friend had raised his voice, and Cm Node Duke, he was sorry to hear, hail followed his Noble Friend, in favour of what were called the claims of the planters (here the Marquis of Sligo made a private communication to the Noble and Learned L o re). His Noble Friend (continued Lord Brougham) had reminded him that before quitting the subject he ought to say a wed respecting piracy. The Noble Duke had asked what by the law of nations, constituted piracy, and what was its punishment ? Ile could only say that, according to the law of nations, common slave trading was always considered piracy. If on the way from Fernand o Po, for instance, to any point of the coast, be it three or be it thirty miles distant from th I shore, a boat were found with one slave only Os board, and that slave were taken by and carried on .board another vessel, exactly according to the very self-same process by which that slave was captured, you can neat that es an act of piracy by the law of nations ; and anybody taking the slaver who had done that act, were he a f i ortriguese, a Spaniard, a French rran, or an Englishman, migl:t take him home and proceed against him as aph ate. If this were done beyond three miles of the shore, it would, according to the strict letter of the law, be piracy; but if it happened within that distance o f this shore, it would only be reckoned a common man-stealing, and if the violence were accompanied with loss of life, a common murder, and no longer piracy. Well, then, how was piracy to be dealt with ? He never could see the use of introducing slave trading into en Act for abolishieg capital puaishments for certain offences which in no one feature resembled slave trading. The rule established by that Act was, that offences should cease to be capital only if unattended with vialk nee and blood. Niw, slave trading was from its very nature attended by violence end blood ; and he never was of opinion that the capital puni4nnent by that enactment should have been taken away f, orn slate tra ling, and he had no ob jection whatever to see the capital nature of that offence re stored. If it were proposed to declare slave trading a piratical offence, he should have no hesitation whatever in so far amending the law of this country, and in restoring it to the rank which it always ought to have maintained, by making piracy, by the municipal law, a capital offence, as well as by the law of nations. With respect to the arguments of his Noble Friend, relating to head-money, anything more incon clusive, more inconsistent with itself, more utterly unintel ligible, he (Lord Brougham) had never beard advanced. His Noble Friend had said that he had no objection to increase the tonnage money, but he was not willing to give up the head-money ; and that it was necessary to give an induce mant to the captains employed in capturing slave-vessels with their cargoes. Why ? ue, said his Noble Friend, it was so very disagreeable a duty ; it was so disgusting to be on board of a slave veasel, with a cargo of slaves. If there were two vessels, said his Noble Friend, one lad-gin with slaves., and the other not, the captains and crew would immediately spy the one that was empty, and run on board, leaving the other to escape, unless some additional inducement were held out to them, and, therefore, it was necessary to give head money. And. yet these were the men—the captain and the crew—whom he (Lord Brougham) was taunted with having suspected of allowing anything like a sordid feeling to in terfere with the discharge of their public and professional duties! The Noble Lord at the head of the Admiralty boasted that on behalf of the profession at the head of which he was placed. Now, by the bye, he (Lord Brougham) knew many a Gallant Admiral who would have blushed to have heard the Noble Earl state that ho was at the head of their profession. Th . e Earl of MINTO—My words were, " the profession at the head of which I had the honour to preside." Lord BRO UG NI—No doubt the Noble Earl meant to say that, but what he really did was—( Order, order. ) Nay, I appeal to any Noble Lord whether the Noble Earl did not sly— 'Tie Carl of MINTO—I am perfectly willing to admit that it is possible I may have used one word for another. I am not accustomed to addre s your Lordships, and have less command of words than the Noble and Learned Lord ; it therefore is possible I may have used the word attributed to me. Lord BROUG HAM—Be it as it might, it was so under stood; and he (Lord B.) made an observation on it in his re ply, and no contradiction was given. But the main charge against him (Lord )on that occasion was, how could he suppose any thing so monstrous, so unworthy of the honour of the naval coast service, as to suppose head-money to make them anxious to take vessels mill slaves on board rather than vessels that were empty ? To which his (Lord Brougham's) answer was the grosst inconsistency of offering heal-money at all. If the head-money was not intended to offer any induce ment and excitement to activity on the part of those honour able and gallant persons, then it was utterly useless, and com pletely unintelligible ; but if head-money was intended to be useful by exciting the zeal of the coast guard, then it could only do so at the precise moment at which alone it was ap plicable, namely, when they saw that a vessel bad slaves on board, and just in proportion as it was effectual to excite their zeal and activity, it tended to make them prefer ships laden with slaves to ships unladen. But it now turnA cut that that money to those who took prize-money was nothing; and these men were to be scared from the dis charge of their duty, and to be entirely paralyzed by the fear of having their senses offended by the atmosphere of a slave ship, and of having their feelings outraged by the sights of suffering and of creelty that took place on board a vessel laden with slaves. He thought that no man who took a calm and serious view of this most important question could entertain a shadow of doubt, that the utter cessation of head-money was absolutely and indispensably necessary. It gave him great pleasure that upon this subject he bad the high authority of a Noble Lord formerly at the head of the Government with whom he (Lord Brougham) had acted, who was once at the head of the Foreign Department when first negotiations were opened with foreign Powers on this subject, who brought in a Bill for the abolition of the slave trade in 1807, and who presided over the Admiralty during a splendid period of the late war—be meant Earl Grey—and who felt a great interest in this question, and just as much into rest in the honour and character of the navy as his noble successor who now filled his chair, and whose opi nion it was, that it: was utterly impossible that head money could be any longer a;:?wed. With respect to the amend ment of his Noble Friend, his (Lord Brougham's) objection to it was, that it was not so eti . ctual nor so precise as the re solutions he had himself proposed. The amendment con tained a great deal of congratulation, ;Ind passed sentence of acquittal and approval on the Spanish Government for the treaty into which it had entered, and by which it had made i,kacy criminal, whereas that treaty, as he understood, had not yet been completed. Lord G LEN bi L.G said that the treaty with Spain engaged that country to pass a law making piracy criminal; but the law had not yet been made. Lord BROUGHAM durst say that it never would.— ( Laughter. ) He had recson to believe Beat upon this subject a governor in one of the chief Spanish slave trading settle ments had been known to say, that if he had intimation that it was really the wish of his Government to put down the slave trade, he would put it down in eight and forty hours. Their Lordships were aware of what was passing in one of the Spanish colonies, Havannah ; that in Havannah the newspapers had been prevented from notifying the sailing of slave vessels to the cost of Africa, for fier they should be intereepted by the English cruisers. Unless very different steps were taken than had already been adopted, it was clear that the slave trade must go on. lie then wished to say one word regarding the system of slavery in our West India Colonies. He was exceedingly glad that her Majesty's Government had determined to bring in a Bill to legislate on this subject, and net to leave it in the powera of tha Colonial Assemblies. From the statement which had been made by the Noble Lorsl,•he understood that the Bill would comprise the several matters contained in the first five of the rosolu for s which he had moved ; but there were ono or two others which he had not insetted in his resolution, but which he trusted to see embodied in the Bill. If lie had ob tained their Lordships' consent to the five resolutions, ho would have certainly moved those additional ones, which he still hoped to see carried into effect. Sonic better regulations with respect to the administration of justice were absolutely essential and indispensable.—( Cries of " Hear, bear.") It was also a matter of great importance to give more powers to the Governor. lie was well aware of the difficulty of trust , ing too much to the Governor. Much would depead upon the prejudices of the individual, and much on the re ' lation in which he stood with the LocarAssembly. To one Governor they might safely entrust one set of powers—to another Governor they might give another class—whilst to a third a much more scanty authority and far greater circum spection is the giant were necessary. If, indeed, they could multiply the Noble Lord so much as to give him as a Go vernor to each of our West India Islands--(Laughter.) Noble Lords might laugh, but the possibility would be nu cause of laughter in those islands—the Noble Lord's presence would be hailed as one of the greatest blessings which could be showered down upon the colonies.—(llear, hear, hear.) The manly feelings of the Noble Lord, his resolu tion to perform Isis duty, his inflex ble determination not to be led away from his purpose, his withdrawal from all local pre judices, and his intention to set himself above all the preju dices of the planters, although himself a planter, would lead him (Lord Brougham) to place far greater confidence in a good result than ho thought it possible to eact under the pro visions of the measure which was to be introduced. Ho owned that his confidence of success now was very scanty, but far be it from him to say that no good would be done. He thought it extremely necessary, however, to give additional powers to the inspectors, and to free them from claim's in certain cases, for let them only see the almost inexplicable difficulties which attended the working of the system; let them see well the evil which happened if the stipendiary magistrates wcr2 liable, as in the cases of Mr. Bourne arid Captain Oldgrave—that a penalty of 6001. should be levied on one, 890/. on the other ; or if they were indicted for a common nuisance, li!,e Mr. Baines, for only doing his duty. Ile would have proposed to have vested in the Governor the power of stay hag massy like act:oni. These and many other arrangements might be made by the Bill ; but sorry was lie to say of the Bill (what in deed applied as well to his own five resolutions), that . these and other altxrati . ms could only be regarded in the light of palliatives and temporary expedients ; but that tho system itself could only work for a few months —that the ma. ctiinery must necessarily stop when the w irks were in so great disc der—that whilst a planter bore a planter's nature, whilst a sl ive existed in the colonies, end whilst there inns rely ds tinction between the iubabitatits of diff.rent colours, the at. tempt to rend( r th's reelress of permanent utility Wes utterly and hopelessly unavailing. The only stop which could he put to the evil of which he--of which all —complained was at once to follow the example already set by some of the Cole nies—to abolish the entire sjstem of apprenticeship, and to declare that all the slaves should be free front the Ist Of August, LSV. Ile was told that this w(l3 unfair to the philter; that the planter was the particular 01-ject of their core. • The plant r isas undoubtedly the object of his own care in the first instance, and for himself he had sufficiently provided ; but le? was also to be the oh. Jest of their Lordships' care, and that he had been too by far oo great nit extent. Ile (Lord Brougham) h a d seen the t r turns for which he had moved on a former night of the appropriation of the sutrs voted, :and he must say that some of the planters had rccerved more timer the value of the fee shni4 e of their estates; and if not of the whole value of the estates themselves, yet he was sure th‘.t it ful.ounted to a ereat part -of the value of the NJ'groes upon them. 7,0001. lied b e e n granted to one person, 8,000/. to aeuther ; repeatedly 20,0001. had been paid in hard money ; lowing freedom in the new meter of things, but of rapid moral improvement of social union among all castes and colours,and of a 'progress coutined to none in the arts of civility and refine ment.—( Loud cheers.) These forms are pleasing to con template even in the. imagination ; but another form is nigh. I do not not deny that there is danger, nor can I close my eyes to it. The planters, its usual, look to the wrong quarter. Their interest tells them that they are in jeopardy, bet it is a false interest, and mis leads them as to the nature of the risk they run. They, who always dreaded Emancipation—who were alarmed at the prospect of negro indolence, who stood aghast at the vi sion of Negro rebellion should the chains cease to clank, or the lash to resound through the air, gathering no wisdom from the past —still persist in affrighting themselves, and scaring you with imaginary apprehensions from the transition to entire freedom out of the present intermediate state. But that intermediate state is the very source of all their real danger ; arid I dis guise, rot its magnitude from myself. You have gone too far if you stop here and go no furtl-er ; you arc in imminent hazard of having loosened the fetters; you do not strike them off—if leaving them ineffectual to restrain, you let them remain to gall, and to irritate, and to goad. Be ware of that state, yet more unnatural than slavery itself—li berty bestowed by halves—the power of resistance given-_ the inducement to submission withheld—)ou have let the slave taste cf the cup of freedom ; while intoxicated with the draught beware how you dash the cup away from his lips —you have produced the progeny of liberty--see the prodigious hazard of swathing the limbs of the gigantic infant—you know not the might that may animate it—have a care, I beseech you have a care, how you rouse the strength that slumbers in the arm of the sable peasantry of the Antilles I The children of Africa under the tropical sun of the West, with the prospect of a free Negro Republic in sight, will not suffer themselves to be tormented when they no longer can be controuled. The fire ia St. Domingo is raging to windward, its sharks are borne on the wind, and all the Charibbean sea is studded with the materials of combination. Every tribe, every shade of the Negro race will combine from the fiery Koromantine to the peaceful Eboe, and the ghastly shape of colonial destruc tion meets the astonished eye— " If shape it may be called that shape has none. Distinguishable in member, joint, or limb, Or substance may be called that shadow seems For each seems either ; black it stood as night, Fierce as ten furies, terrible as hell." I turn away from the horrid vision that my eye may not once more,in the prospect of enduring empire, and peace founded upon freedom, I regard the freedom of the negro as accomplished and sure. Why? Because it is his right—because he has shown himself fit for it—because a pretext or a shadow of a pretext can no longer be devised for withholding that right from its pos sessor. I know that all men now take a part in the question, and that they will no longer bear to be imposed upon now they are well informed. My reliance is firm and unflinching upon the great change which 1 have witnessed—the education of the people unfettered by party or by sect—from the beginning of its progress, I may say fsom the hour of its birth. Yes, it was not for a humble man like me to assist at Royal births with the illustrious Prince who condescended to grace the pa geant of this opening Session, or the great captain and States man in whose presence lam now proud to speak. But with that illustrious Prince and with the father of the Queen, I assisted at that other birth, more conspicuous still. With them and with the lord of the house of Russell I watched over its cradle —I marked its growth—l rejoiced in its strength—l witnessed its maturity ; I have been spared to see it ascend the very height of supreme power—directing the councils of the State—accele rating every great improvement—uniting itself with every good work—propping honourable and useful institutions—extirpating abuses in all our institutions—passing the bounds of our dominion, and in the new world, as in the old, proclaiming that freedom is the birth-right of man—that distinction of colour gives no title to oppression—that the chains now loosened must be struck off, and even the marks they have left effaced by the same eternal law of our nature which makes nations the masters of their own destiny, and which in Europe has caused every tyrant's throne to quake. But they need feel no alarm at the progress of right who defend a limited monarchy and support popular institutions—who place their chiefest pride not in ruling over slaves, be they white or be they black—not in protecting the oppressor, but in wearing a constitutional crown, in holding the sword of justice with the hand of mercy, in being the first citizen of a country whose air is too pure for slavery to breathe, and on whose shores, if the captive's foot but touch, his fetters of them selves fall off.—( Cheers. ) To the resistless progniss of this great principle I look with a confidence which nothing can shake; it makes all improvement certain—it makes all change safe which it produces; for none can be brought about, unless all has been accomplished in a cautious and salutary spirit. So now the fulness of time is come ; for our duty being at length discharged to the African captive, I have demonstrated to you that everything is ordered—every previous step taken—all safe, by experience shown to be safe, for the long-desired consummation. The time has come—the trial has been made—the hour is striking: you have no longer a pretext for hesitation, or faultering, or delay. The slave has shown, by four years' blameless behaviour and devotion unsurpassed by any English peasant to the pursuits of peaceful industry, that he is as fit for his freedom so any Lord whom I now ad'lrcs3. I demand his rights-- I demand his liberty without stint, in the name of justice and of law—in the name of reason—in the name of God, who has given you no right to work injustice. I demand that your brother be no longer trampled upon as your slave.— ( Hear.) I make my appeal to the Commons, who represent the free people of England; and I require at their hands the performance of that condition for which they paid so enormous a price—that condition which all their cons+ i tuents are in breathless anxiety to sec fulfilled ! I appeal to this House—the hereditary judges of the first tribunal in the world—to you I appeal for justice.--( Hear, hear.) Patrons of all the arts that humanize mankind, under your protection I place humanity herself! To the merciful Sove reign of a free people I call aloud for mercy; to the hundreds of thousands in whose behalf half a million of her Christian sisters have cried aloud, that their cry may not have risen in vain. But first I turn my eyo to the throne of all justice, and devoutly humbling myself before Him who is of purer eyes than to behold any longer such vast iniquities—l im plore that the curse over our heads of unjust oppression be averted from us—that your hearts may be turned to mercy —and that over all the earth His will may at length be done ! The Noble and Learned Lord resumed his seat amid loud cheering from both sides. The following resolutions were then put from the chair:— " That an humble address be presented to her Majesty, earnestly beseeching her Majesty to take immediate steps for negotiating with the Governments of Spain and Portugal, and obtaining the concurrence of the Governments of France and the United States in such negotiations, with a view to declare the trade in slaves piracy, wherever the same is carried on ; and making those who persist in it liable to all the pains and other consequences of piracy. " 1. That it is the opinion of this House that the reward of persons engaged in suppressing the trade in slaves, by the payment to them of head-money, is highly inexpedient, and ought to be discontinued : and that in lieu thereof there should be substituted a payment in proportion to the tonnage of the vessels employed, and the number of guns, and of the crew on board the same. "2. That it is expedient, for the more effectual suppres sion of the trade in slaves, to employ a number of steam vessels under the command of the cruisers of her Majesty, and to issue to private individuals letters of marque, to enable them to fit out such vessel;, but so as they place such vessels under the command of her Majesty's cruisers ; and that the money paid by way of reward on the capture of any slave trade vessel, as well as the proceeds of the sale of such vessel, when condemned, be distributed among the crew of such private vessel, subject to a deduction of one-fourth part, which should be made payable to the officers and crew of the cruiser under whose command the private vessel may be." The second series was as follows : " 1. That it is expedient, with a view to carry into effect the intentions of the Act of 1833, that there should be such a dis tribution of the work and labour of the indentured apprentices as shall leave them the half of every Friday to themselves for working in their provision grounds, and the whole of every Saturday for attending the market. " 2. That it is expedient to declare all apprentices who at present are registered as non-prtedial still non Trredial on the Ist day of August, 1838, notwithstanding any agreement be tween them and their masters, or any change of employment which thry may have undergone, or may hereafter undergo, since the time of their registration.. " 3. That all questions which may arise between appren tices and masters respecting their rights, after the Ist day of August, 18.38, shall be d ec id e d by t h e st i pen di ar y mag i strate o f the district where the party complaining resides, without any appeal or other proceeding whatever. " 4. That no female apprentice shall on any pretence be flogged oc otherwise punished by any infliction upon her per son ; and that if any such punishment shall be inflicted, or if any punishment shall he inflicted which is found to have been wrongfully inflicted by the authority of the master, such ap prentice shall be immediately declared free from her appren ticeship ; and that all complaints of such female apprentice, touching any punishment, shall be heard by the Stipendiary Magistrate of the district alone, and decided on by him with out appeal. "5. That it is expedient to vest in the Governors of the several Colonies the power of making such regulations re specting the gaols and respecting the police of the several Colonies as they shall think fit, the same to have the force of laws until disallowed by her Majesty's Government ; and that copies of the same shall be transmitted forthwith to her Majesty's Government. 6. That it is expedient that the period of prmlial appren ticeship in all the Colonies should cease and determine on the Ist day of August, 1838, and that until such time the fore goinc, regulations ought to be every where observed and en forced by law." The Duke of SUTHERLAND felt that he should not do justice to the petitions which were entrusted to him if he his concurrence in had been then deli tnheeg just e a d n t d h excellent t u o t b i i s t e y r observations r isTi i e n h g. vered. He felt every reason to hope that this system, which all agreed was opposed to the interests of humanity, would soon cease. Instead of setting an example to the world of justice and clemency, this atrocious slavery, which no doubt was co-existent with human society, prevailed in more bar barous forms undor governments calling themselves Christian than under any heathen nation. The impressive and forcible speech of the Noble and Learned Lord on a former evening could not be said to contain exaggerations of the horrible cru elties of this system. The men, or he should rather say the monsters, who were engaged in this traffic, were the foulest scum of the dregs of the human race.—( Hear, hear.) But those who encouraged and maintained the traffic were amongst the nations and governments called Christian. Ile thought the energy and talent of the Noble and Learned Lord could